April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month Focus on driving, Florida!

Hands on the wheel, Eyes on the road, Mind on driving.

A distraction occurs any time you take your eyes off the road, your hands

off the wheel, and your mind off your primary task: driving safely.

More...http://www.distraction.gov/

Distracted driving is extremely risky behavior that not only puts drivers

and passengers in danger, but also pedestrians and bicyclists sharing the

road. Focused attention on driving helps to prevent crashes overall.

Texting requires all three types of distraction, making it one of the most

dangerous of distracted driving behaviors. However, this is not the only

cause of distracted driving. Other common distractions include: talking

on a cell phone, tending to kids or passengers in the back seat, watching

Inside this issue:

Distracted Driving 1

Work Zone Awareness 3

Alcohol Awareness 5

Call Before You Dig 7

Word Search 8

Safety Slogans 9

Survey 10

Calendar 11

Florida Department of Transportation

Safety Advisor APRIL 2016

The Safety and Health Awareness Newsletter Page 1

CATEGORIES OF DRIVER DISTRACTION

Visual Taking your eyes off the road

Manual Taking your hands off the steering wheel

Cognitive Thinking about anything other than driving

an event outside of the vehicle, interacting with passengers, eating, unsecured pets, grooming, adjusting

radio or climate controls and daydreaming.

In 2015, there were more than 45,700 distracted driving crashes in Florida resulting in more than 39,000

injuries and more than 200 fatalities. Distracted driving crashes were 12.2 percent of all crashes, 7.4 per-

cent of all fatal crashes and 15.4 percent of all injury crashes. The Florida Highway Patrol worked approxi-

mately 43 percent of distracted driving crashes statewide.

The categories for distracted driving (excluding Not Distracted and Unknown) on a crash report are:

Electronic Communication Device (cell phone, etc.).

Other Electronic Device (navigation device, DVD player).

Other Inside the Vehicle, External Distraction (outside the vehicle).

Texting.

Inattentive.

In 2015, the number one driver distraction noted at the time of crash was Inattentive (65 percent) and the

citation violation most associated with distracted driving crashes was Careless Driving. The 20–24 age

group made up the largest group of distracted drivers (17.8 percent), followed by 25–29 year-olds (14.3

percent) then 15–19 year-olds (11.6 percent).

Campaign hashtag: #FocusonDrivingFL

Florida Department of Transportation

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Florida Department of Transportation

The FDOT Work Zone Safety campaign continues its message that everyone must recog-

nize the dangers of reckless driving through highway work zones. We ask you to do your

part when it comes to Work Zone Safety:

1. Be Alert – Expect anything to occur why entering a work zone.

2. Don’t Tailgate – Unexpected stops frequently occur in work zones.

3. Don’t Speed – Note the posted speed limits in and around the work zone.

4. Don’t Change Lane in the Work Zone – The time saved just isn’t worth the chance.

5. Minimize Distractions – Avoid changing the radio & using cell phones while driving in

work zones.

6. Expect the Unexpected – Keep an eye out for workers and their equipment.

The message is being heard. The number of deaths in Florida construction zones has been

steadily declining since 2005 when 137 people were killed in work zones. During 2013,

there were 75 fatalities, 4,422 injuries, and 7,519 work zone crashes. Most crashes in con-

struction zones are preventable, as are the deaths and injuries that occur.

Work Zone Safety. It’s Everyone’s Job.

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Florida Department of Transportation

Florida Department of Transportation

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Florida Department of Transportation

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The Safety and Health Awareness Newsletter Page 7

This April marks the ninth annual National Safe Digging Month, reminding Florida residents to always call 811 two full business days before any digging project. National Safe Digging Month is formally recognized by the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate and has traditionally earned the support from nearly every state governor across the country.

When calling 811, homeowners and contractors are connected to Sunshine 811.

Sunshine 811 notifies the appropriate utility companies of your intent to dig. Profes-sional locators are then sent to the requested dig site to mark the approximate loca-tions of underground lines with flags, paint or both.

Every six minutes an underground utility line is damaged because someone de-

cided to dig without first calling 811. Striking a single line can cause injury, repair costs, fines and inconvenient outag-

es. Every digging project, no matter how large or small, warrants a call to 811. Installing a mailbox, building a deck and planting a tree or garden are all examples of digging pro-jects that should only begin a few days after a call to 811.

“As April marks the traditional start of digging season, we are using this month to

strongly encourage individuals and companies to call 811 before they begin digging,” said Mark Sweet, Sunshine 811 executive director. “By calling 811 to have the under-ground utility lines in their area marked, homeowners and professionals are making an important decision that can help keep them and their communities safe and connect-ed.”

The depth of utility lines can vary for a number of reasons, such as erosion, previ-

ous digging projects and uneven surfaces. Utility lines need to be properly marked be-cause even when digging only a few inches, the risk of striking an underground utility line still exists.

The Florida Department of Transportation encourages area residents to visit

www.sunshine811.com/homeowner for more information about digging safely.

B L O H O C L A H Q S H M Y S C C V W Y

E I B A B D L O P A S E Q Y R J V C I U

V P N Q S O X U O X N I Y M E X J I D J

X C O G N I T I V E N D C E G V R D I P

D A B K E I Q E K A V P S J N D O K Y P

O E S E T D H S T G N I M A E R D Y A D

S L T D H I R T L Y A V R L S I L W W N

N E O C C A E I A O T C K I S V A H A I

T W H L A N V D N G R E U V A I U E R M

N A E S T R O I A K A T X E P N S E E K

T J U I A T T E O P I E N T C G I L N C

G Q V I T R N S R R O N V O I E V Z E W

G E D R U I C I I M S O G M C N L Q S G

N L E T H W L X P D K Z U O Z J G J S I

B L B S F L O R I D A K S R I L C L F C

A G N I M O O R G P K R H R E Q A X D W

B U S A F E T Y O Y L O N O S U C O F L

S L L I G Y W P Q C K W F W N N O A P W

I O Y I Q Y V Q C I Q V Z A R T A U K S

C Z Q O E I D P O Z G K M V C E A J V K

The Safety Advisor puzzle is generated from the

http://school.discoveryeducation.com/

Omissions or errors are possible and are the sole responsibility of the program

and not the producers of this Newsletter.

DAYDREAMING

DISTRACTED

DRIVING

EYES

FLORIDA

FOCUS

GROOMING

HANDS

INATTENTIVE

MANUAL

ALCOHOL

ALERT TODAY

ALIVE TOMORROW

APRIL

AWARENESS

BEHAVIORS

BINGE DRINKING

COGNITIVE

CONTROLS

CRASHES

The Safety and Health Awareness Newsletter Page 8

MIND

PASSENGERS

PUT IT DOWN

SAFETY

SUNSHINE

TEXTING

VEHICLE

VISUAL

WHEEL

WORKZONE

U Drive. U Text. U Pay.

One Text or Call Could Wreck it All.

Talking on a phone in a Work Zone can leave

you….Speechless.

Be Safe. Be Smart. Be Seen. Make sure drivers can see you.

The Safety and Health Awareness Newsletter Page 9

Safety Hot Line (850) 414-5255

You can report hazards by telephone.

You can remain anonymous.

Everything is confidential.

This monthly newsletter is produced in the State Safety Office by Mark Eacker. For content information,

please call or email the editor, Mark Eacker, at:

850-414-4176 / mark.eacker@dot.state.fl.us

Our internet address is: www.dot.state.fl.us/safety

Our intranet address is: Infonet.dot.state.fl.us/safetyoffice/

Safety Advisor Customer Satisfaction Survey

We are interested in your opinion. In order to better serve your needs, please take a moment to fill out this brief questionnaire. Send to:

Fax: 850 414 4221

Via US Postal Service (or inter-office mail) to the address shown below:

Attention: Industrial Safety Florida Department of Transportation

605 Suwannee Street, MS 53 Tallahassee, FL 32399

Safety Slogan of the Month Entry Form

Survey Questions Yes No

Are the Safety Advisor topics relevant to your day to day job?

Do you use the Safety Advisor in any manner other than read it?

What would you suggest to improve the suitability of the Safety Advisor to your needs or to improve the overall quality? (Please be specific)

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Do you have any questions regarding Industrial Safety programs and/or operations? Please feel free to include your questions

or comments.

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The Safety and Health Awareness Newsletter Page 10

PAY DAY

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THE MONTH OF APRIL

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

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PAY DAY

April 2016 is Observed as National Distracted Driving Awareness Month; Alcohol Awareness Month; National Poetry

Month; Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month; National Autism Awareness Month;

Stress Awareness Month; and National Donate Life Month.

Birthstone Diamond and Crystal.

Fruit & Veggies for the Month Strawberries; Asian Pear; and Tomatillos.

April Flower Daisy and Sweet Pea.

Astrological Signs Aries (till 19th) & Taurus (20th →).

Other Notable April Dates & Events National Work Zone Awareness Week.

PAY DAY

April 2016

PASSOVER

PASSOVER PASSOVER PASSOVER PASSOVER PASSOVER

PASSOVER

PASSOVER